Food Stall: Customers Chase Me across the Country-Chapter 222 - 223: It’s... That Kind of Like

When is a man the most handsome?

A thousand people have a thousand opinions, it’s hard to say the exact moment.

But if you add "one of" in front, then when a man says "I’ll pay," it’s certainly one of those moments.

He Lu Xue said with a face full of surprise: "Are you sure? I have quite an appetite!"

Wang Fan chuckled: "One meal won’t make me go broke, eat as much as you like."

"You said it, no take-backs!"

Wang Fan shook his head, indicating he absolutely wouldn’t, and then he understood why He Lu Xue and Zhuo Qianqian could be best friends and frenemies at the same time.

Birds of a feather flock together truly is a wise saying.

Other tables only had three or four dishes, and they’d order more if needed, but not Wang Fan’s table. Plates, dishes, bowls, steamers—every kind of utensil filled the table to the brim.

He Lu Xue chuckled: "Boss Wang, you won’t regret this, right? I can pay for myself if you do."

Wang Fan laughed helplessly: "If you can finish, it’s on me; if not, you pay. Waste is shameful."

He Lu Xue snorted lightly: "Who do you think you’re underestimating? This is just enough to get me 80% full."

Wang Fan was never a stingy person, and recently he’d made a small profit, so this little money meant nothing to him.

Wang Fan felt hungry himself, so he picked up the nearest bowl, which he remembered was called bright powdered noodles.

The contents of the bowl were all white, with a sprinkle of crushed peanuts and chopped green onions in the middle as garnish.

After mixing it well, he took a sip with a spoon, savoring it in his mouth.

The noodles seemed to be made from rice, very soft and mushy, and even the shredded meat and mushrooms inside were cooked until very soft.

Not that it wasn’t tasty, but it was too soft and mushy, which didn’t quite match Wang Fan’s taste; maybe he’d love it when he was thirty or forty years older.

It’s just that the price was shocking, a small bowl of this cost 23 yuan, even more expensive than a plate of golden silk shrimp balls!

No wonder he heard that breakfast in Guangfu could cost a few thousand; looking at it like this, it’s not impossible.

He sighed a little and then picked up a piece of fresh shrimp red rice cheung fun, which somewhat overturned his perception.

Not only was there an oily layer outside the red rice skin, but upon biting it, there was unexpectedly a crispy layer inside, making a "crunch" sound, and the taste was quite fresh.

Afterward, Wang Fan picked up a black truffle broth soup dumpling, which he was most looking forward to.

But often what you look forward to the most can be disappointing, and indeed he couldn’t taste the black truffle; it just tasted like an ordinary soup dumpling, with a slight sweetness.

The shrimp dumpling was also different from how he used to make it to cater to northern palates, using all shrimp paste for more flavor, but this one was half shrimp and half paste, retaining more freshness, though it seemed slightly bland for his northern taste.

However, Wang Fan still ate it with relish; this was like a collision of northern and southern flavors, which could give him more experience in taste control in the coming days.

While eating, he looked up to see Zhuo Qianqian holding chopsticks but hardly moving them.

What’s going on? The foodie isn’t eating?

Wang Fan asked curiously: "Nothing you like? Do you want to order something else?"

Zhuo Qianqian shook her head and said: "I’m not really hungry..."

Yet before she finished speaking, her stomach let out a "grumble" sound, making her wish she could crawl under the table.

He Lu Xue rolled her eyes, swallowed the shrimp dumpling in her mouth, and interjected: "She was hungry since last night, just craving your staff meals! You’d better take her away tonight; I can’t handle someone visiting from ’relatives’."

"You!"

Zhuo Qianqian stood up in anger to pull the outspoken He Lu Xue, but as she stood, Wang Fan grabbed her arm.

"Let’s go, I’ll cook for you, can’t work if you’re starved."

"Boss Wang, remember to settle the bill, haha."

Wang Fan waved at He Lu Xue and took Zhuo Qianqian to the front desk to pay.

Not expensive, just a bit over 300 yuan.

The two went into the RV one after the other, and once in the kitchen, Wang Fan asked: "What do you want to eat?"

Zhuo Qianqian immediately replied: "Century egg and lean pork congee!"

Wang Fan nodded, took out century eggs from the fridge, and upon reaching for the rice, he found with dismay that all the rice had soaked too much water.

He shrugged helplessly and said: "Well, can’t make that congee, let me make you a century egg, salted egg, and cucumber soup then, guaranteed to be delicious."

"Okay, Boss, anything you make is the best!"

Wang Fan busied himself in the kitchen while Zhuo Qianqian stood at the door, peeking in with her big, bright eyes.

Her mind couldn’t help but flash back to last night’s conversation and the small moments spent together during this time.

Last night, her frenemy He Lu Xue proposed all sorts of tricks, but Zhuo Qianqian felt none of them were suitable for her, she had her pride after all!

"Boss."

"Hmm?"

"Do you like me?"

Just like that, naturally and without any embellishment, Zhuo Qianqian asked the question.

It’s like solving a math problem—using all kinds of formulas and methods leads to only one answer.

Why go through the trouble when there’s a simple and effective way?

It’s a leap of faith!

Silence.

Wang Fan didn’t speak, nor did Zhuo Qianqian, leaving only the sound of gas burning and the soup simmering in the small space.

As well as the exaggeratedly loud heartbeat of both individuals due to nervousness.

After a while, Zhuo Qianqian’s bright eyes began to lose some of their shine.

Silence is an answer in itself, isn’t it?

But as a bold and emotional Uyghur girl, she needed to see and hear the rejection herself if it were to come.

"I do."

After a long silence, Wang Fan finally whispered these three words.

These three words had been brewing in his mouth for a long time, just lacking the courage to push them out.

For someone like him, hearing words like love and affection from him might be harder than anything else.

But he truly didn’t want to see disappointment in his assistant’s eyes; those eyes should be filled with smiles.

"What kind of like?"

Zhuo Qianqian felt her heart racing, as if it would jump out of her chest the next second.

"The kind... that really likes you."

Wang Fan gazed into Zhuo Qianqian’s eyes and handed over the freshly prepared century egg, salted egg, and cucumber soup with a smile.